NASA has commissioned SpaceX to launch the first two modules of the future Gateway space station. The modules will go to the Moon on a Falcon Heavy rocket no earlier than May 2024.
One of the main NASA projects for the coming years is the lunar program "Artemis". Its key element will be the Gateway space station, which will be located in an unusual elliptical orbit . It will receive manned and cargo ships, and from it astronauts will go to the surface of the moon. Also, the station and the program as a whole have another important goal — the development and testing of technologies that will allow the first people to land on Mars in the future, and one of the main concepts implies that the migration ship will start from Earth, dock to the Gateway, and then go to Mars.
Initially, NASA was going to use its own superheavy rocket SLS for almost all stages of this program. But its development has been going on for almost a decade and the first launch was repeatedly postponed due to various reasons, including unsuccessful tests. The last failed test was in January 2021. Because of this, NASA has already given the delivery of cargo to the station to private companies, including SpaceX, which will develop a heavy version of the Dragon space truck for this purpose, and now also decided to shift the delivery of the first station modules to the lunar orbit to SpaceX.
Under the $ 331.8 million contract, SpaceX will launch the PPE energy propulsion module and the HALO habitable module into space. The PPE will be equipped with solar panels with a total capacity of 60 kilowatts, ion engines for orbit correction and antennas for communication with the Earth, arriving vehicles and landing modules. The HALO will have a sealed structure and serve as a shelter for astronauts and a platform for preparing for landings on the surface of the moon.
PPE and HALO modules under the rocket head fairing
Image source: NASA
The modules will be assembled into a single structure on the Ground and launched together. For this purpose, a super-heavy Falcon Heavy rocket will be used, and due to NASA's requirement to launch two modules at once, SpaceX will use a longer head fairing, which is currently being developed under a contract with the US Department of Defense. The launch will not take place until May 2024.
At the moment, it is assumed that NASA's own Orion spacecraft, launched on the SLS, will be responsible for delivering astronauts to the lunar station. The Agency has been instructed to finalize SpaceX manned spacecraft Starship landing people on the moon, so in case of further problems with the rocket or spacecraft NASA SpaceX will be technically ready to implement all stages of the lunar program on their own.
Gregory Copies
